Ramblings, Thoughts and Rants from an Urban Dweller Living in Dignowity Hill, San Antonio Texas

Photo Credit and Photo Copyright

The photographs of San Antonio and Dignowity Hill used within this blog are the property of Juan A Garcia East Light Images. All rights are reserved to the owner. Copy and use of these pictures is forbidden without written permission. Contact Juan at jagarciatx@gmail.com for permission.

Monday, March 9, 2009

Times are a changing. Work on the train quiet zone has quietly progressed and should be completed within weeks. Soon the sound of train horns will be silenced. I'm going to miss the sound of those horns. All of of sudden some of our streets are getting repaved. Hays Street from Pine Street to the old bridge recently got a face lift and couple of more streets are showing signs of work in progress. That's encouraging and I'm hoping that it's the start of breaking a cycle of neglect that has long plagued this old neighborhood. Many of us that live in the neighborhood want to see our community shine. We want to see responsible property ownership not absentee landlords. We want better street lighting and well maintained streets. We want to see old misconceptions and myths about the Eastside buried. We're still have a little ways to go to make that vision a reality. There seems to be a historical and prevalent attitude of benign neglect towards our old Eastside neighborhoods from the City. Some of the complaints from neighborhood residents about the lack of code compliance enforcement tend to be valid. City services tend to be slow to respond or not respond effectively. The one bright spot I've noticed lately is the increase of police presence and that's a good thing. But to really change things it will be up to us who live in the neighborhood to create a tipping point. In his book "The Tipping Point" author Malcolm Gladwell writes about how little things can make a big difference. All it takes is one simple idea and one simple act of action to create a tipping point towards something great. Think about it this way: the simple act of picking up trash or just keeping your yard mowed or painting your house can be become contagious. And pretty soon before you know it, things are better.

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About Me

I'm a life long resident of San Antonio. I'm a lover of old houses, architecture, old neighborhoods, history, photography, art, good food and old cemeteries. My wife, Barb and I move into Dignowity Hill in 2007 after restoring our current home. Our house was built in 1909. The house, which we named Rose, has brought us immense joy living in it and being a part of the Dignowity community. We are both active in community activities and truly believe in the notion of building community.

About Dignowity Hill

Dignowity Hill is located on the near east side, 2 miles from downtown San Antonio. Found on the National Historic Registry of Neighborhoods, it is named for Anthony Michael Dignowity, a Czech-American writer, public official and medical doctor who was born in Kuttenburg, Bohemia in 1810.

Dignowity immigrated to the US in 1831. He came to San Antonio from Nachez, Mississippi with a group of volunteers for the Mexican War. Dr. Dignowity built his home, often called Harmony House, on a hillside with a fine view of downtown San Antonio. The land remains as present day Dignowity Park. Dignowity sold plots of the surrounding land with its fine breezes to his various well-heeled friends.Noted San Antonio families such as the Friedrichs, Elmendorfs, Lockwoods and Otts built homes in this area. According to the San Antonio Historic Society, the area was first settled as estates with one house per block in the 1850’s. The homes were typically two story, constructed of limestone and brick, and reflected the best designs of their time.

Dignowity Hill Historic District: within the boundaries of the neighborhood lies the Dignowity Hill Historic District. The district was established to preserve the unique cultural and historic character of the area.

Revitalization: The neighborhood is currently experiencing a surge of revitalization as investors and property owners are restoring some of the grand old homes in the area. The neighborhood is centrally located with easy access to downtown San Antonio. St. Paul Square, the Alamodome, the Carver Cultural Center, restaurants and other attractions are easily accessible from the neighborhood.